350 and 360 challenges
Today Rosemary and I stopped and gaped in awe as about 20 whales swam close to the beaches of Scarborough, and Witsands, heading north. Large fins and curved tails danced between the waves and plumes of sea water gushed into the air. It literally made me stop, for a long time. As Rosemary squealed in delight at each new sighting I thought of how fortunate we are to live so close to nature. Not everyone does, and so making a special day to think about how we can preserve our planet for future generations is very important.
Tomorrow, Saturday 24th October, is the international day for climate change. To raise awareness of the necessity of preserving our natural world is the international 350 campaign.
350 parts per million CO2 in the atmosphere is the safe limit for humanity. We are currently over 390 and need to return to 350 in order to sustain life on our planet. All of us need to take action to maintain a healthy environment for not just our sake, but that of our children.
Around South Africa and other countries people are creating visual spectacles from melting ice cubes to giant 350 symbols made from humans on mountains and beaches. I have my own 350 challenge which is very small, and is to last two weeks from the moment I press the send button. It is called '360 for 350'. Here it is:
1. I promise to recycle EVERYTHING that I can recycle but sometimes don't.
2. I promise to turn off all electrical appliances that I am not currently using (including the lights downstairs, laptop, and hot water supply.)
3. I promise to curtail my driving by planning each evening before and week ahead to link more journeys, or finding another solution (walking or cycling).
4. I will challenge myself to think of one new 'green thing' to do each week, (like make a 'recycled toy' or clear an invasive alien from my garden; recycle 'grey water').
5. I promise to convince 5 people to take up this challenge with me.... starting with you! (At least one person will be in a different country)
If you are already self disciplined enough to be doing all of the above, then my challenge to you is to think of a new challenge and post it back to me.
Please forward this challenge on in the way I have to you, to five of your friends/ colleagues. Let me know you have taken this up, and which country you are in, and lets see if we can reach 360 degrees around the world in the next month.
Tomorrow, Saturday 24th October, is the international day for climate change. To raise awareness of the necessity of preserving our natural world is the international 350 campaign.
350 parts per million CO2 in the atmosphere is the safe limit for humanity. We are currently over 390 and need to return to 350 in order to sustain life on our planet. All of us need to take action to maintain a healthy environment for not just our sake, but that of our children.
Around South Africa and other countries people are creating visual spectacles from melting ice cubes to giant 350 symbols made from humans on mountains and beaches. I have my own 350 challenge which is very small, and is to last two weeks from the moment I press the send button. It is called '360 for 350'. Here it is:
1. I promise to recycle EVERYTHING that I can recycle but sometimes don't.
2. I promise to turn off all electrical appliances that I am not currently using (including the lights downstairs, laptop, and hot water supply.)
3. I promise to curtail my driving by planning each evening before and week ahead to link more journeys, or finding another solution (walking or cycling).
4. I will challenge myself to think of one new 'green thing' to do each week, (like make a 'recycled toy' or clear an invasive alien from my garden; recycle 'grey water').
5. I promise to convince 5 people to take up this challenge with me.... starting with you! (At least one person will be in a different country)
If you are already self disciplined enough to be doing all of the above, then my challenge to you is to think of a new challenge and post it back to me.
Please forward this challenge on in the way I have to you, to five of your friends/ colleagues. Let me know you have taken this up, and which country you are in, and lets see if we can reach 360 degrees around the world in the next month.
From now on I will walk to the shop down the road to buy bread and milk.
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